The Utah Jazz gave Lauri Markkanen a substantial pay raise last offseason, which raised some questions. This was not because of Markkanen's abilities but because many wondered if such a contract was worth it, given the Jazz's current rebuilding process.
The biggest headline was that the Jazz had a star who wanted to be there long-term. At the same time, by giving him a much more lucrative contract that he earned, they may have missed their window to trade him while his value was at its highest.
While that topic is purely subjective, Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus predicted that Markkanen's contract would be among the 10 contracts in the NBA that would age the worst. Among the 10 he listed, Markkanen was ranked at No. 7.
Pincus explained that the ambiguity surrounding Markkanen's long-term place in Utah is why he doesn't think "The Finnisher"'s new deal will age gracefully.
"Markkanen will already be pushing 30. How does that fit with Utah's rebuilding timeline?" Pincus asked. "Can the team trade into or develop enough talent to build around Markkanen? Did they give him the contract to flip him in trade this (or next) offseason? Whoever takes him on will get a talented scoring big who isn't much of a rim protector—and the contract is not cheap."
The earliest the Jazz can trade Markkanen is this offseason in August. However, Utah might not pounce on that because he signed on that date specifically to signify that he didn't want to be traded.
It's a brutally honest assessment of Markkanen, which might not necessarily be wrong. However, analysis like this points to something that needs to be said about both Markkanen and the Jazz.
It doesn't matter how Markkanen's contract ages in Utah
Even if Markkanen's deal doesn't age well (and it's yet to be determined if the Jazz plan to keep it), it won't mean much for Utah because they're in a position where they are more than happy to pay him the money he wants while they evaluate their best options while they try to build their next playoff contender.
That's the perk of being in a long-term rebuild. They can afford to pay Markkanen without worrying about it hurting their cap flexibility or their intentions, unlike other teams like the 76ers who are paying top dollar for Joel Embiid and Paul George. Their lackluster play and inavailability knowing what the Sixers are paying them not only hurts their flexibility, but they stink during a time in which they don't want to stink.
Markkanen hasn't really gotten in the way of the Jazz's tank this season, and if all goes well, he could be an integral part of their next playoff team. He might be overpaid, but it's not like the Jazz have a ton of money committed to other players.
It's not a perfect situation, but it's far from a bad one. Markkanen might be overpaid, but it isn't a problem for the Jazz and likely never will be.